This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
As will be appreciated, oil and natural gas have a profound effect on modern economies and societies. Indeed, devices and systems that depend on oil and natural gas are ubiquitous. For instance, oil and natural gas are used for fuel to power modern civilization in a wide variety of mobile vehicles as well as stationary plants and factories of all kinds. Further, oil and natural gas are frequently used to heat homes during winter, and to manufacture an astonishing array of everyday products.
In order to meet the demand for such natural resources, companies often invest significant amounts of time and money in searching for and extracting oil, natural gas, and other subterranean resources from the earth. Particularly, once a desired resource is discovered below the surface of the earth, drilling and production systems are often employed to access and extract the resource. These systems may be located onshore or offshore depending on the location of a desired resource. Further, such systems generally include a wellhead assembly through which the resource is extracted. These wellhead assemblies may include a wide variety of components, such as various casings, valves, fluid conduits, and the like, that control drilling and/or extraction operations.
Much of the equipment used in such wellhead assemblies is operated hydraulically. For example, a blowout preventer (BOP), used to control the well pressures while drilling, may rely on hydraulic pressure for operation, especially during an unanticipated overpressure condition. In subsea wellhead assemblies, the pressurized hydraulic fluid is often stored in a “gas over liquid” accumulator in close proximity to its point of need that supplies pressurized hydraulic fluid to a BOP or other equipment. Multiple accumulators may be used with a single BOP stack, and each accumulator includes a “gas-end” and a “liquid-end.”
As subsea installations migrate to ever deeper water depths, such as 10,000 ft or deeper, higher hydraulic pressures are required to overcome the hydrostatic pressure at the seabed. To combat the extreme hydrostatic pressure, higher rated connections for the liquid-end of the accumulator may be used. One type of high pressure connection used is an “autoclave” style connection. However, while such connections provide a higher pressure rating, they may restrict the hydraulic fluid flow from the accumulator. The autoclave connections may be difficult and time-consuming to install and assemble to a leak-free condition. Additionally, the tubing used with the autoclave connections may be more expensive than the tubing used with the conventional connections.